Electronic music instrument system with musical keyboard

ABSTRACT

An electronic music instrument system, comprising: an electronic music instrument, having selectable groups of reproducible sounds and individually selectable reproducible sounds; a signal generator for energizing an audio amplifier responsive to different digital audio sources, including the groups of sounds and the individual sounds a graphical user interface for displaying at least one control graphic representing controllable parameters of the audio signals generated by the generator; and, a controller responsive to operation of the control graphic for adjusting the controllable parameters of the generator and for selectively coupling different ones of the sources to the generator. The graphical user interface can comprise: a video display; and, a touch-responsive overlay. The controllable parameters can include multiple instrument sound selection and sound layer assignment, controlled responsive to operation of the at least one control graphic. The at least one control graphic can be displayed on a single screen.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of United States ProvisionalApplication No. 60/020,601, filed Jun. 24, 1996, and United StatesProvisional Application No. 60/021,522, filed Jul. 11, 1996.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to electronic musical instruments. The inventionrelates more particularly to electronic musical instruments having acomputer-based control system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Known musical keyboard systems utilizing computer systems forcomputer-assisted production of musical output typically havecomplicated control systems and user controls, such as numerous buttons,knobs, switches and sliders, making them impractical for novice usersand even for proficient musicians during performances.

Early developments in computer-assisted musical instruments haveutilized MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) protocol to processmusical instrument inputs for the emulation of musical sound throughplayback of digitally stored voice samples. Numerous devices have beendeveloped utilizing MIDI and associated technology to provide electronickeyboards as well as digital and digital/acoustic pianos.

Resulting systems have interfaced with the user in one of two extremes.The systems either provide little or no interaction between the user andthe underlying computer system, as in the case of consumer digitalpianos, commonly used for player piano and recording functions, or areprimarily intended for use by recording and performing professionals,utilizing complicated interfaces involving numerous buttons, knobs,switches and sliders. Other systems utilize complicated visualinterfaces, making the features largely inaccessible to novice orconsumer users and unmanageable for "real time" adjustment duringperformances by professional musicians.

Moreover, most systems incorporating computer-based management of amusical instrument have primarily focused on the operation of themusical instrument and have not incorporated the musical instrument andits sound production into a larger music information managementenvironment that is readily accessible to both novices and performingmusicians through a consolidated, rapidly accessible graphical userinterface. Existing systems also do not provide a vehicle to launchmultimedia applications from a consolidated graphical user interface foruse in a musical instrument and multimedia music informationenvironment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an electronicmusical instrument system having a consolidated, user-friendly controlfor substantially all functions and parameters of music informationmanagement and operation.

It is another object of the invention to provide an electronic musicalinstrument system that facilitates rapid, real-time control adjustmentof musical parameters and functions to quickly alter the sound of thesystem by the user, even during performance on the musical instrument.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an electronic musicalinstrument system that is capable of interactive control and responsewith the musical instrument and music information sources for teachingand training.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide an electronicmusical instrument system that can obtain digital and analog informationfrom a variety of sources and present the information to the user infull motion pictures using MPEG-1 standard video and multi-colorgraphics or use the information to effect automatic playing of themusical instrument by the system itself.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a musicalinstrument and multiple music information source environment forlaunching and running music related applications through a readilyaccessible graphical user interface.

These and other objects of the invention are achieved by acomputer-managed electronic musical instrument system including amusical instrument, such as musical keyboard, interactively managed by acomputer control system that is operated by the user primarily through agraphical user interface, preferably embodied in a touch controlledvideo display.

The musical instrument system can further include components to obtaindigital information from a variety of sources, including hard drive,floppy disk, optical disk, and on-line services and databases through amodem. Thus, the system can function to automatically play the musicalkeyboard, present audio-visual information such as sheet music withperformance examples, karaoke, educational and other audiovisualinformation and presentations including motion pictures, and produceaudio and visual output of digital music, text or other informationdownloaded from on-line sources through the modem.

According to an aspect of the invention, the system is arranged so thatall these functions are substantially controlled through a graphicaluser interface, preferably manipulated by input through a touch screenoverlay. Thus, a complete music information environment is created inconjunction with a versatile musical keyboard to enhance the performanceand the utility of the musical keyboard, controlled through a unified,simple, user-friendly interface that can be readily mastered by a noviceand yet facilitates rapid mid-performance adjustments and control by aseasoned musician.

An electronic music instrument system, in accordance with an inventivearrangement, comprises: an electronic music instrument, havingselectable groups of reproducible sounds and individually selectablereproducible sounds within the groups of sounds; an audio signalgenerator for energizing an audio amplifier responsive to different onesof a plurality of digital audio sources, including the groups of soundsand the individual sounds of the electronic music instrument; agraphical user interface for displaying at least one control graphicrepresenting controllable parameters of the audio signals generated bythe generator; and, control means responsive to operation of the controlgraphic for adjusting the controllable parameters of the generator andfor selectively coupling different ones of the sources to the generator.

The graphical user interface can comprise: a video display; and, atouch-responsive overlay.

In a presently preferred embodiment, the controllable parameters includemultiple instrument sound selection and sound layer assignment,controlled responsive to operation of the at least one control graphic;and, the at least one control graphic is displayed on a single screen ofthe graphical user interface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more thorough understanding of the invention can be gained from areading of the following detailed description of various embodiments ofthe invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of an interactive musicalinstrument system according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is an organizational block diagram of an exemplary musicinformation management system (MIMS) according to the invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary information processingsubsystem architecture of the MIMS depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary conversion board forinterfacing the user interface display and touch control with the MIMS;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary MIDI sound generationsubsystem architecture of the MIMS depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary software hierarchy for the musical instrumentsystem of the invention;

FIG. 7 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for single instrument sound or voice selection;

FIGS. 7A is a preferred graphical user interface control screen formetronome functions;

FIG. 8 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for instrument ensemble sound or voice selection;

FIG. 9 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for single screen keyboard range allocation for the instrumentensemble;

FIG. 10 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for single screen volume adjustment for the instrumentensemble;

FIG. 11 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for single screen key transposition adjustment for theinstrument ensemble;

FIG. 12 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for single screen pan adjustment for the instrument ensemble;

FIG. 13 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for drum sound selection;

FIG. 14 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for syncopated style selection and control,

FIG. 15 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for music and audio player control;

FIG. 16 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for music and audio player control as shown in FIG. 15 withthe appearance of a lyrics screen;

FIG. 17 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for multiple layer sequence recording;

FIG. 18 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for setting clock and key sensitivity levels;

FIG. 19 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for foot pedal settings;

FIG. 20 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for input settings;

FIG. 21 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for printer selection;

FIG. 22 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for screen saver settings;

FIG. 23 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for file management functions;

FIG. 24 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for copying files from one location to another;

FIG. 25 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for running applications within the musical instrument systemenvironment;

FIG. 26 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for saving settings established through various controlscreens; and

FIG. 27 is an exemplary graphical user interface control screen of theinvention for retrieving settings previously established.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The invention is directed to an electronic musical instrument utilizinga computer-based music information management system to process andproduce sound and other music information from a plurality of sources.Generally, the invention provides the convergence and integration ofvarious subsystems to arrive at an interactive musical instrumentsystem. The system can thus derive music and other information from avariety of information sources to enhance the performance and uses of anelectronic musical keyboard. The system preferably creates auser-friendly environment, established by a consolidated, touch screencontrol interface.

The preferred embodiments of the invention provide a multimediaplatform, including components for presenting full motion digital video,animation, multi-colors, high resolution graphics, and digital audio.The software drivers for the musical instrument system preferablypresent motion picture through the MPEG-1 standard of 30 frames persecond to provide full motion digital video.

The musical instrument system preferably includes a storage subsystemcomprising 720 megabytes through an optical disk, 500 megabytes or morein a hard drive, and 1.44 megabytes on floppy disk. The optical disk andassociated drivers enable use of compact discs in a variety of formats,including CD-DA and CD-ROM.

The musical instrument system preferably utilizes MIDI (MusicalInstrument Digital Interface) standard protocol for communicationsbetween the musical keyboard and a MIDI sound generator, as well as forreceipt and transmittal of music information between the various digitalsources of the system.

The musical instrument system can further include a modem for exchanginginformation with a variety of on-line sources. Through the on-linesources and the optical disk drive, the musical instrument system canobtain information for performing a variety of functions previouslyavailable only through complicated or separate systems.

Referring to the figures and particularly to FIG. 1, an embodiment ofthe musical instrument system of the invention can generally include amusical keyboard 10 encased in a grand piano housing 12. Alternativehousings, including upright, console and the like, can be used. Themusical keyboard 10 is preferably an 88-key, velocity-sensitive keyboardthat is capable of producing electric signals suitable for scanning andconversion into MIDI data by a computer system. The system preferablyincludes a plurality of digital information sources, such as a drive 14for a floppy disk 15 and a drive 16 for a compact disk 17, each beingenclosed in the piano housing 12 and optionally hidden behind a cover,such as a hinged door 18.

According to an aspect of the invention, the control of the musicalinstrument system sound parameters and information retrieval andutilization are preferably unified in a graphical user interfacepresented on a video monitor, such as a flat screen display 20 that ispreferably equipped with a touch control overlay 22 for detecting andprocessing player input through relative position of contact with theoverlay 22. The flat screen display 20 is preferably positioned flush ina music stand 24 of the piano housing 12, although other mountings arepossible.

A music information management system ("MIMS" hereinafter) forcoordinating the interaction between the consolidated graphical useinterface, the musical keyboard and the plurality of digital informationsources is preferably encased within the housing 12. An overview of anembodiment of the MIMS is set forth in FIG. 2. An exemplary design ofthe music information processing subsystem is illustrated in FIG. 3 andFIG. 5 with a detail of an exemplary MIDI sound generation subsystemshown in FIG. 5. An overview of a touch-sensitive LCD conversion boardassembly is shown in FIG. 4. Throughout the figures, effort has beenmade to use the same reference numbers for the same or similarcomponents to provide continuity among the illustrated embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 2, the MIMS 26 can generally include a CPU subsystem28, a display subsystem 30, a user input subsystem 32, a multimediaaudio subsystem 34, an input/output subsystem 36 and a MIDI audiosubsystem 38. The various subsystems can be linked through a bussubsystem 40. The CPU subsystem 28 can include a primary processor 42for the MIMS 26, as well as ROM 44 for storing BIOS instructions and RAM46 for application execution. The CPU subsystem 28 can be supported byDMA/interrupt controllers 48 and components 50 for timers and real timeclock functions.

The display subsystem 30 preferably includes a graphics decoder 52 forgenerating video images under command from the CPU subsystem 28. Thefunctions of the graphics decoder 52 can be enhanced by a graphicsaccelerator 54 for providing improved MPEG-1 level video. The graphicsdecoder 52 can further be supported by dedicated video memory 56. Thedata generated by the graphics decoder 52 can be further processed by adigital to analog converter 58 for presentation to a display subsystem59 including the flat display 20 (FIG. 1).

The user input subsystem 32 allows the user to navigate through thevarious control screens of the graphical user interface discussed morefully below. The user input subsystem 32 can provide input controllers60 for processing user inputs through the preferred touch screen overlay22 (FIG. 1). Alternative user inputs, such as a mouse 62, can also beinterfaced with the user input subsystem 32.

According to the invention, a plurality of sources of musical digitalinformation are provided through the input/output subsystem 36. Theseinformation sources can include the CD player 16, capable of readingdata from compact discs and producing CD-DA audio output. Theinformation sources can further include a hard drive 64 and the floppydisk drive 14. The information sources can be interfaced with theoverall system through various controllers 66 with CD audio output 68being directed to the multimedia audio subsystem 34. The input/outputsubsystem 36 can provide communication components including a modem 70for the transmission and receipt, through telephone lines 71, of musicaldigital information and the generation of audio for direct processing bythe multimedia audio subsystem 34. The communication components canfurther include a parallel port 72, an RS-232 serial port 74, and MIDIIN, OUT and THRU ports 76 interfaced with the system through an I/Ocontroller 78.

The multimedia audio subsystem 34 is preferably constructed to processaudio signals from a variety of digital and analog sources throughoutthe MIMS 26. The multimedia audio subsystem 34 can include a multiplechannel stereo mixer 80 for receiving and mixing signals from the CD-DAsource 68, the modem 70, PCM files on line 82, an external microphone 84and a MIDI sound generator 86 within the MIDI audio subsystem 38.

The analog signals of the microphone 84 can be routed directly to thestereo mixer 80 or can be further converted to digital code through aPCM encoder 88 for further use, recordation or other processing by theMIMS 26. PCM files on line 82 can be converted to analog form by a PCMdecoder 90 within the multimedia audio subsystem 34. The output of theaudio subsystem 34 is directed to a sound output assembly 92 including,for example, an audio amplifier and one or more associated loudspeakers.

The MIDI audio subsystem 38 provides a MIDI sound module 86 forgenerating analog audio signals based on MIDI instructions received fromvarious components of the MIMS 26. Instructions for the MIDI soundgenerator 86 are managed by a MIDI coprocessor 94, which also serves tocontrol scanning of MIDI input devices and particularly the musicalkeyboard 10 (FIG. 1) by a MIDI scanner 96. The MIDI scanner componentry96 can be adapted to monitor and process input from other MIDI sources,including pedals 98, pitch bend and modulation controls 100 andafter-touch features 102 in the keyboard 10.

Control Processing Unit Subsystem

Referring to FIG. 3, the music information processing subsystem 104 ofthe invention preferably includes an Advanced Micro Devices 586-133central processing unit 42, processing at 133 MHz. Alternative centralprocessing units can be utilized but the specifications of the preferredunit are considered minimum for suitably quick performance. The musicinformation processing subsystem 104 preferably includes components toestablish multimedia capabilities. The music information processingsubsystem 104 further preferably includes 8 MB of application RAM 46 anda 72 pin SIMM socket (not shown) for additional memory expansioncapability.

A preferred system BIOS ROM 44 includes standard BIOS routines, such asestablished in Chips and Technologies BIOS SE4041, including routinesfor testing system hardware, a bootstrap loader to load the operatingsystem off the hard drive 64, and a group of device drivers that servicethe system I/O components, such as the display 20 (FIG. 1), the harddrive 64 and floppy disk drive 14, a real-time clock, and parallel andserial ports. The BIOS preferably additionally includes routines forbooting the system without displaying any diagnostic text on the display20 (FIG. 1) or displaying any operating system boot screen. The BIOS canalso preferably include conventional system debug and test routines toallow the MIDI co-processor 94 (see FIG. 5 also) to diagnose problems inthe main processor portion of the system 104.

The BIOS preferably has a fixed configuration and will not rely on theCMOS RAM, but rather is preferably stored in Flash memory that can beupdated without replacing the device. The BIOS can preferably beaugmented to include routines to avoid error messages and otherinterrupting displays to the user. Some hardware test routines can bemodified to ignore certain errors, such as keyboard error and CMOS RAMChecksum tests. Clock functions are preferably set via the operatingsystem.

The music information processing subsystem 104 further includescomponents for timing, DMA 48 and interrupt controllers 50. Thesefunctions can be accomplished, for example, by a CS4045 from CrystalSemiconductor, but could be met by any chip(s) capable of handling thesystem's timers and real-time clock and optionally implementing thesystem's DMA and interrupt controllers.

Graphics Subsystem

The main processor CPU 42 is operatively linked through a local CPU bus108 to a plurality of support devices, including the graphics subsystem30 (FIG. 2). The graphics subsystem 30 provides a graphics controller 52that preferably includes a built-in graphics accelerator and a digitalto analog converter (DAC) capable of generating SVGA graphic output. Agraphics processor providing preferred specifications is the 65548/65550Flat Panel CRT GUI DAC Multimedia Engine from Chips and Technologies,but other similarly configured graphics processors can be used. Thevideo output is preferably directed to the flat screen display 20 (FIG.1), such as a Sharp Model No. LQ10D031 4-bit color LCD display. Thegraphics processor 52 preferably provides 640×480 resolution at16-bits/pixel color and interfaces with dedicated display memory 56,which is preferably 1 megabyte (MB) of EDO high performance RAM.

The interface to the display 20 and the touch-sensitive overlay 22(FIG. 1) is implemented through a display link 110, which can beconstructed in conventional manner. The display link chip set preferablytakes 20 bits of TTL parallel data from the graphics controller 52 andconverts it to serial Low Voltage Differential Signaling ("LVDS") datathat is 3 bits wide. This conversion occurs at seven times the dot clockrate by way of an internal phase lock loop (PLL). 20 bits of datainclude 6 bits red, 6 bits green, 6 bits blue, an H sync, and a V sync.One LVDS signal is also used for clocking and sync of the serial datafor a total of four LVDS pairs. Referring to FIG. 4, the receivingdisplay link 117 converts the serial LVDS data back to twenty bitsparallel, plus the dot clock to connect directly into the LCD flat panel20.

Again in FIG. 3, the graphics subsystem further preferably includes agraphics accelerator 54 (FIG. 2) capable of YUV-to-RGB conversion andimage scaling for higher performance MPEG-1 video. The MPEG-1 images canbe generated through known hardware and/or software systems. Thesefunctions can be provided, for example, by the 65550 chip for thegraphics controller 52, the graphics accelerator 54, and the DAC 58(FIG. 2).

I/O Subsystem

The music information processing subsystem 104 preferably includes acontroller 66, such as provided by a CS4045 chip from CrystalSemiconductor, which is a multi-purpose peripheral and memory interfacethat can communicate via IDE bus masters 112 with the hard drive 64 andthe CD-ROM drive 16. The CD-ROM drive 16 is preferably at least aquad-speed (4X) CD-ROM drive, capable of 600 KB/sec reads, and the harddrive 64 preferably has at least a 540 MB capacity.

The controller 66 can also include a CS4041 chip used to handleaddressing and refresh of the main system memory 46 and addressing ofthe system BIOS stored in the ROM 44.

The controller 66 also preferably provides communications with the touchscreen overlay 22 (FIGS. 1 and 4) as a standard input device through abi-directional link 114 via a display connector 116, primarily toreceive input signals from the touch control overlay 22 but also todirect calibrating signals and other information to the overlay 22 andits controller.

Display Subsystem

As shown in FIG. 4, the musical instrument system provides a user inputmeans which preferably includes the touch panel or overlay 22 and an LCDconversion board 118 mounted behind the flat panel display 20 (shownschematically). The arrangement of the conversion board 118 for thedisplay and touch screen interface can be designed in conventionalmanner to generate screen images pursuant to instructions from the musicinformation processing subsystem 104 and to retrieve input signalsgenerated by player contact with the touch screen overlay 22.

The conversion board 118 can be linked to a power supply 120 arranged toprovide dimming control, DC to AC conversion and a +12V supply. Astandard voltage regulator 122 for conversion to a +5V level can also beprovided. The conversion board 118 can be linked to the flat paneldisplay 20 through a conventional thirty-one conductor flat cable 124.As discussed earlier, the flat panel display link 117 converts signalsreceived through a display connector 116 for further processing anddisplay on the flat panel display 20.

The User Input Subsystem

A touch screen controller 126 preferably includes a Motorola 68HC05Microprocessor, a TI TLC1543 10 bit analog to digital converter,allowing 1024 points on both the X and Y axis, and a National 93C46EEPROM. The touch screen controller 126 controls the analog to digitalconversion and the brightness of the backlight. It also provides serialcommunication with the main processor 42 (FIG. 3), stores and retrievesdata in the EEPROM, and runs diagnostics. The touch screen controller126 is operatively connected to the touch panel 22, which can be either4 or 8 wire analog resistive.

Because of tolerance variations in both the touch screen 22 and theinterface components, it is necessary to calibrate the controller 126.Calibration data is preferably stored in an EEPROM so that it isretained after power-down.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the input/output controller 78 preferablyincludes a 37C665 Super I/O chip. The chip is an integrated controllerthat provides interface to the preferred 3.5" 1.44 MB floppy diskettedrive 14, a bi-directional parallel port 92, and a serial port 128 forconnecting, for example, an optional mouse input device (not shown).

The subsystem 104 can further provide the modem 70, preferably aRockwell No. SMV144AC modem, capable of transferring data at 14400 baud,although slower modem speeds to 9600 baud can be used. The modem 70 canbe used to access music information from on-line services and otherremote sources for storage and processing in the MIMS. The modem 70 canalso enable transmission from the system for transferring musicinformation to other systems. The modem 70 is connected through a DataAccess Arrangement (DAA) module 131, which provides electrical isolationand audio connection between the telephone line 71 (FIG. 2) and thedata/modem circuits. The DAA module is designed to meet or exceed theFCC part 68 requirements allowing direct connection into the PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN). The DAA module 131 provides ringdetection and hook switch control as well as an audio path and 1500 voltisolation/800 volt surge protection. The modem 70 and DAA module 131interface with the telephone line 71 through a standard RJ11 port 133.

Multimedia Audio Subsystem

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the multimedia audio subsystem preferablyincludes components for receiving and mixing audio signals from aplurality of sources including the modem 70, the MIDI sound generator86, the microphone 84 with the amplifier 130. Optionally, alarms orbells from controllers 48, 50 can also be made audible. The audio outputsignals are directed to an amplifier 134 and loudspeakers 136 as well asa headphone amplifier and port 138. The system preferably includes aheadphone present switch 140. The system can optionally provide volumeand balance controls (not shown).

The multimedia audio system preferably includes a CS4232 integrated chipwhich includes the stereo mixer 80, capable of combining the multiplesignals into a two channels stereo output; attenuators for the inputsignals, a voice encoder 88 (FIG. 2) to process the microphone vocalinput; and a balance control. Preferably, there are five possible audiosources in the system: CD Audio, MIDI synthesis, microphone audio, PCMaudio and modem audio.

When playing a CD-DA disc in the CD drive 16, the built-in Red book,16-bit audio decoder 132 on the CD-ROM drive 16, capable of playingCD-DA audio at 44.1 kHz, decodes the CD audio to an analog audio outputwhich connects to the CSZ4232 audio mixer and processor 80 through ananalog input for mixing, processing and output to the audio amplifier134 and loudspeakers 136 or the headphone amplifier and port 138.

The audio mixer 80 can also receive PCM audio input. PCM audio, alsoreferred to as wave audio, is a most common form of audio used in CD-ROMapplications. A PCM or "WAV" file is transferred digitally to the CS4232audio mixer and processor 80 under control by the CPU 42 which in turndecodes it through a 16-bit DAC to an analog output before mixing itwith the other possible audio sources for output to the system audioamplifier 134.

The system's sound generator 86, which is contained in the MIDI audiosubsystem discussed more extensively below, produces an analog audiooutput routed to the CS4232 audio mixer and processor 80.

The microphone 84 can be connected to the system for recording, karaokeand other musical voice input applications. The microphone input ispreferably routed through a pre-amp 130 to match levels with the otheraudio sources. This analog audio input connects to the CS4232 audiomixer and processor 80. The system should preferably permit recording ofmicrophone input as well as pass-through to the audio mixer andprocessor 80. These mixer and processor features are preferablyaccommodated by the CS4232 mixer and processor 80. Recording can beaccomplished through a 16-bit ADC with PCM sampling at 44.1, 22.05, and11.025 kHz. This encoding can be performed in the CS4232 mixer andprocessor 80.

As an additional source of music audio information, the audio output ofthe modem 70 can be played through the player's audio system so the usercan hear a dial tone or busy signal when dialing up an on-line service,for example. The modem audio output can optionally be routed through apre-mixer 142 for mixing with alarm and bell tones from the CS4045controller 48, 50, which can in turn be made audible by the audio mixerand processor 80.

Bus Subsystem

The local CPU bus 108 links the main processor CPU 42, graphicscontroller 52, main memory 46, the CS4041 controller 66, and the timers,clocks and DMA/Internet Controller 48, 50, and the co-processor bus 150(see FIG. 5) with a preferred 50 MB/sec throughput. An Industry StandardArchitecture (ISA) Bus 144 has a preferred 8 MB/sec throughput and isused to link the 37C666 I/O controller 78, the audio mixer and processor80 and the modem 70. The bridge between the buses 108, 144 arepreferably buffers 146. The preferred buffers 146 are bi-directional,8-bit, 74LS245 type, with tri-state capabilities. The buffers 146 alsopreferably provide extra drive current to support the loading of thedata and address buses by the peripherals.

MIDI Audio Subsystem

Referring to FIG. 5, the MIDI audio subsystem 38 generally provides thecomponents for sound generation; the interface with the musical keyboard10 and associated optional MIDI controls, such as foot pedals 98 andoptional pitch bend and modulation controls 100; and monitoring andassurance of system integrity through various diagnostic procedures. TheMIDI audio subsystem 38 has a bus 150 with a preferred throughput of 50MB/sec and is linked to the music information processing subsystem 104through a translator/bus master 162 that couples to the local CPU bus108 (FIG. 3) in the music information processor subsystem 104.

The MIDI co-processor 94 provides central management of the MIDI audiosubsystem 38. The MIDI co-processor 94 is preferably a high performance,integrated processor containing a 32 bit CPU with a 32 bit bus, 1 KB of4-way instruction cache, 4 KB of static RAM, two 32 bit high-speed DMAcontrollers, two serial ports with baud rate generation, a bus watchdog,a periodic interrupt/system timer, an interrupt controller, and dual 8bit parallel ports. Certain speed-sensitive, low latency CPU operationsincluding keyboard scanning and interrupt handlers can be executed bycode running in the instruction cache. The MIDI co-processor CPU 94preferably has a built-in serial port 164 which can be used inmanufacturing quality assurance testing to verify the workings of theentire assembly.

The main function of the MIDI co-processor 94 is to off-load the mainCPU 42 (FIG. 3) during time critical functions such as keyboard/footpedal scanning, audio processor sound generation control, MIDI datastream processing, and analog to digital conversion control for volume,balance, pitch bend, modulation, and keyboard after-touch. The MIDIco-processor 94 preferably has dedicated local DRAM and flash memory166. The local flash memory 168 preferably stores diagnostic software,chip set initialization values, and a loader program for obtainingstandard operating software from the hard drive which will run on MIDIco-processor local memory 166.

Sound generation is preferably provided by a MIDI sound generator wavetable synthesizer 86. The MIDI wave table synthesizer 86, controlled bythe MIDI co-processor 94, converts MIDI commands into an analog audiooutput which is sent back to the audio mixer 80 for mixing with theother audio sources (see also FIG. 3).

The MIDI wave table synthesizer 86 preferably includes an EMU-8000 audioprocessor 151 from E-mu Systems. Preferably, digital samples of 128different instrument sets are stored in a sample memory or voice RAM 152of preferably 8 MB, and up to 32 MB. The samples are preferably loadedinto the voice RAM 152 from the hard drive 64 (FIG. 3) during systemboot-up under routing control by the MIDI co-processor 94.

A dual port memory controller 154 allows both the MIDI coprocessor CPU94 and the main processor 42 to directly access the voice RAM 152. TheMIDI co-processor CPU 94 preferably has direct access to quickly loadthe sample data from the hard drive 64. The audio processor 151 alsopreferably has direct access for playing samples with minimum load timedelay. The dual port memory controller 154 is also configured to allowthe audio processor 151 to access the memory 152 at 16 bits wide and toallow the MIDI co-processor 94 to access the memory 152 at 32 bits wide.

The wave table voice samples are read and processed by the audioprocessor 151 and digitally mixed into a digital audio output streamwhich is converted to a stereo analog audio output by adigital-to-analog converter 156, such as a Crystal Semiconductor DAC.The signals may be cleaned up with filters 158 and directed to the audiomixer 80 of the multimedia audio subsystem 34 (See also FIGS. 2 and 3).The audio processor 151 preferably has a dedicated 1 MB RAM memory 160for storing instructions for further manipulation of the voice samples,such as control of their envelope parameters.

The MIDI music subsystem 38 also serves to scan and process input fromthe keyboard 10 and other MIDI devices. The musical keyboard 10 ispreferably an 88 key, velocity sensitive keyboard by Fatar and ispreferably accompanied by the foot pedal assembly 98. The keyboard/footpedal interface 161 is designed to scan the keyboard 10 at a very highrate for superior resolution when measuring key velocity. The keyboardinterface 161 can view sixteen switches at one time. The foot pedals 98are preferably scanned with the same mechanism and at the same rate asthe keyboard keys.

The keyboard and foot pedal interface 161 can consist of four 3 to 8 bitdecoders and two 8 bit bus drivers. There are 88 keys on the preferredkeyboard 10, with two switches per key.

Each of the preferably three pedals also have two switches, therebytotalling 182 switches to be scanned per pass. The MIDI co-processor 94is arranged to view 16 key-switches per scan, thus 6 long-word (32 bit)reads are required for one complete scan. To simplify and reduce theoverhead to the MIDI coprocessor 94, each set of sixteen switches can beassigned a unique word-sequential address. The MIDI co-processor 94 cansupport automatic bus sizing, so that if it is instructed to read a longword (32 bits) and the device is one word wide (16 bits), the MIDIco-processor CPU 94 will automatically perform two sequential word readsto obtain a total of 32 bits.

The scan electronics 96 preferably include a Motorola 68HC05 chip withan analog multiplexer that can also poll and process pitch bend andmodulation controls 100 as well as an optional volume pedal 163 foradjusting to the overall volume of the output of the audio processor 86.

The MIDI co-processor 94 is also preferably arranged to assist in startup procedures and to run diagnostic procedures on system hardware toensure proper operation. On power-up, the MIDI co-processor 94preferably performs the following duties:

initializes the CS4041-4045 chip set 48, 50, 66 (FIG. 3); sets up thegraphics controller; down-loads the default sound wave table from thehard drive 64 to the dual port memory 154 using its built-in DMAcontroller; and sets up specific user default settings, such as volume,balance, and sound table.

After the MIDI co-processor 94 is running its control program, itreleases the main processor CPU 42, which then preferably boots anoperating system off the hard drive 64.

Remote diagnostics, including software updates and repairs, can be runfrom a central off-sight facility through the modem 70 to aid introuble-shooting. Because the diagnostics are stored in the MIDIco-processor local memory 170, these tests do not rely on X86 Windows 95operating system functions.

The MIDI co-processor 94 preferably has full access to all the samedevices as the main processor CPU 42 and preferably has the capabilityto run full diagnostics on the entire system. Both the MIDI co-processor94 and main processor CPU 42 have access to each other's memory;however, the MIDI co-processor 94 preferably has priority over the mainprocessor CPU 42. Preferably, the MIDI co-processor 94 and mainprocessor CPU 42 are also responsible for updates to each other's flashmemory for bug fixes, improvements and enhancements. This isaccomplished through communication through the translator bus master162.

The MIDI co-processor 94 communicates with the host main processor CPU42 through two 8-bit wide mailboxes. When either the MIDI co-processor94 or the main processor CPU 42 sets a bit within its mailbox to "1", aninterrupt occurs and a specific message is transmitted based upon whichbit is set. Potential messages from the MIDI co-processor 94 to the mainprocessor CPU 42 can include error occurrences, input buffer status,variations to volume or balance, and the like.

Main processor CPU 42 to MIDI co-processor 94 interrupts generally meanthat there is data waiting to be processed. For example, if a bit set to"1" represents that a buffer in the main processor CPU 42 has data to beprocessed, the MIDI co-processor 94 could use its high-speed DMA to movea pre-defined block of data to its own local address space forprocessing. Other bit sets could mandate other functions, such asretrieving the serial number from EEPROM 168.

The MIDI co-processor's address space can be divided into multiplesegments, including local DRAM, audio processor DRAM, mail box, FlashROM, 64K PC/AT I/O space, 128 MB main processor CPU space, and 1 MB BIOSPC/AT space. Similarly, the main processor CPU space can also be dividedinto segments; the lower 72 megabytes for standard PC/AT memory and BIOSspace; the next 56 megabytes divided between the mailbox and VGAcontroller; the following 128 megabytes address for MIDI co-processorprivate space; and the last 1 megabyte for system BIOS.

Because there is a difference in bus architecture between the preferredMotorola MIDI co-processor 94 and Intel X86 processor preferred for themain processor CPU 42, a conversion or translation must occur for propercommunications between the processors. One of the main differencesbetween processors is on which byte lane the least significant byte isplaced. Motorola places byte 0, address 0 on D31-D24; Intel places byte0, address 0 on D0-D7. Four 8 bit bi-directional transceivers connect asfollows:

    ______________________________________    Motorola Bytes               Intel Bytes    ______________________________________    D31-D24                      D0-D7    D23-D16     Connected to     D8-D15    D15-D8                       D16-D24    D0-D7                        D25-D31    ______________________________________

The X86 family uses separate byte enables for each byte addressed, whileMotorola uses A0-A1, SIZ0, SIZ1 to determine which byte is addressedusing programmable logic. In order for communication to occur betweenprocessors, signals must be translated between byte enable andaddress/size.

The two processors also follow a different protocol for interacting withmemory and I/O devices. The Intel processor has separate instructionsfor accessing memory and I/O devices while the Motorola processor treatsall memory and I/O devices in the same manner. To adjust for this, aseparate 64K address space is preferably assigned in the MIDIco-processor address space to generate the appropriate I/O access timingand signals in the main processor address space so that when the MIDIco-processor accesses the address space that is reserved for mainprocessor memory space, the appropriate memory access timing and signalsare generated. When the main processor CPU 42 accesses its memory spacereserved for accessing the MIDI co-processor 94, only one set of timingand control signals needs to be generated. Should each CPU 42, 94attempt to access the other's address space at the same time, priorityis given to the MIDI coprocessor 94 to avoid a deadlock condition. Whenthe main processor 42 attempts to access the MIDI co-processor addressspace, logic in the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) generates a busrequest to the MIDI co-processor 94 and waits for a bus grant before theaccess occurs. When the MIDI co-processor 94 wants to access the mainprocessor address space, logic in the FPGA generates a LREQO through thecontroller 66 (FIG. 3) and waits for a LGNTO to be returned from thecontroller 66 before completing the access.

To ensure that the MIDI co-processor 94 has complete control over themain processor 42 for proper start-up and diagnostic purposes, it ispreferably arranged to directly control the main processor reset line.

The MIDI co-processor 94 also controls a write-secure EEPROM 168 thatcontains information including the system serial number, date ofmanufacture, hardware model type and version, and user installation datefor warranty purposes. Once it has been written to, only certain partsof the EEPROM 168 can be altered.

Software Subsystem

Referring to FIG. 6, the components of the musical instrument systemcontrolled by the graphical user interface are linked through multiplelevels of software in a generally known manner. The musical instrumentsystem utilizes micro-controller software 170 in the MIDI co-processor94 and the touch screen controller 126 to manage the interaction withthe co-processor hardware 171, including the musical keyboard 10, thekeyboard pedals 98 and the MIDI sound generator 86. The touch screencontroller 126 manages the input of signals from the touch screenoverlay 22, constituting micro-controller hardware 173.

On a less dedicated level, the information sources of the CD-Rom drive16, floppy disk drive 14 and the hard drive 64 are controlled throughstorage device drivers 172. The graphics controller 52 (FIG. 3) and theflat panel display 20 are controlled by graphics device drivers 174.Input device drivers 176 are used to communicate with the touch screencontroller 126 while communications device drivers 178 are used tointerface with the parallel and serial ports 72, 128, modem 70 and MIDIports 76. An audio device driver 180 establishes control of themultimedia audio processor 80.

The various drivers are further managed by an operating systems layer182, which is preferably the Windows '95 platform by MicrosoftCorporation. Applications used with the musical information system arepreferably linked to the operating system through a Win32 API 184 and aVirtual Synthesizer API 186 within an API layer 187.

The applications layer 188 can include a player shell application 189, aloader application 190 and can further include applications 192, 194,presented such as through CD-Rom, for execution with the musicalinstrument system.

The components of the base operating system layer 182, the device driverlayer 177, the system hardware layer 175, the micro-controller hardware173 and the co-processor hardware 171 can be developed and operatedaccording to conventional personal computer and Windows'95 technologiesparameters and guidelines.

The loader application 190 is preferably developed to manage loading andstarting of the application programs after initial start-up procedures.Preferably, the initial start-up procedures include start-up of the maincomponents to the virtual machine manager and file system manager 182;loading and initialization of all required device drivers 172, 174, 176,178 and 180; and initialization of the hardware devices in the systemhardware layer 175. The loader application 190 is preferably the defaultapplication on system start up. After initial start-up, the loaderapplication 190 preferably launches the player shell application 189 toestablish the graphical user interface according to the invention.

The loader application 190 is also preferably developed to launch otherapplications 192 and 194 when started from the graphical user interfaceof the system as discussed more fully below with reference to FIG. 25.

The Virtual Synthesizer API 186 preferably contains program functionsfor receiving/sending individual MIDI data packets from the MIDIhardware; recording/playing timed streams of MIDI data packets from/tothe MIDI hardware; and handling all layering of musical instrumentsounds.

The touch screen controller software 126 polls the touch screen overlay22 at regular intervals and communicates touches on the touch screen tothe operating system drivers in layer 177.

A MIDI co-processor control program 191 preferably handles scanning andtranslating user input on the musical keyboard 10 and pedals 98 intoMIDI input messages, which are sent to the operating system drivers inlayer 177, as well as translating MIDI output messages into commands tothe audio processor 86. The MIDI co-processor control program 191 isalso preferably responsible for boot-up tests and diagnostic routineswhich test the co-processor hardware and generate error notifications,if necessary, and for downloading sample sets into the voice RAM 152(FIG. 5) from the main memory 46 (FIG. 3) via DMA operations through themailbox hardware 162 (FIG. 5).

The player shell application 189 provides the main graphical userinterface for operating the musical instrument system as set forth belowwith reference to FIGS. 7-27. The player shell application 189 ispreferably written to load graphics from the hard drive through Win32API functions which communicate through the base operating system's filesystem manager 182 to the device driver 172 in charge of the hard drive64, and then presents them to the display 20 through Win32 API functionswhich communicate through the base operating system's Virtual MachineManager 182 to the device driver 174 in charge of the display 20. Aftera graphical control screen is displayed, the player shell application189 waits for user input from the musical keyboard 10 or the touchscreen 22.

On input from the touch screen 22, the system reacts as follows: thetouch screen scanner software 126 registers a contact with the touchscreen 22 and a hardware interrupt is sent to the main processing unit42 (FIG. 2); the input device driver 176 responsible for the touchscreen 22 retrieves the X,Y position of the user contact from the touchscreen scanner 126; and an input message is formulated and passedthrough the operating system to the player shell application 189 throughthe standard input notification functions of the Win32 API 184, and theplayer shell application 189 executes the system function correspondingto the user input.

On input from the musical keyboard 10, the system reacts as follows: ANOTE ON or NOTE OFF is registered by the MIDI Coprocessor ControlProgram 191, and the co-processor CPU 94 (FIG. 2) formulates the notemessage into a MIDI data packet. A hardware interrupt is sent to themain processing unit 42 (FIG. 2). The communications device driver 178responsible for the coprocessor 94 reads the MIDI data packet from theco-processor 94. A MIDI input message is formulated and passed throughthe operating system to the player shell application 189 through theMIDI functions of the virtual synthesizer API 186, and the player shellapplication 189 executes the system junction corresponding to the userinput.

If an input from the musical keyboard 10 or the touch screen 22instructs the player shell application 189 to play music through theMIDI synthesizer 86 (FIG. 2), the player shell application 189formulates a MIDI output message to be sent to the synthesizer 86. Theplayer shell application 189 calls a function from the VirtualSynthesizer API 186 to pass the message on, which passes the MIDI datathrough to the MIDI router hardware via an operating system call to thecorrect communications device driver 178.

The device driver 178 causes a hardware interrupt via the mailboxmechanism 162 to the MIDI co-processor CPU 94. In response, the MIDIco-processor CPU 94 reads the MIDI output message from the device driver178 through functions in the MIDI co-processor control program 191. Theco-processor control program 191 plays the MIDI data by interacting withthe audio processor 151 to load and play the correct sample of thecorrect instrument sample set.

Consolidated Control Through Graphical User Interface

According to an aspect of the invention, music information access andprocessing, as well as sound parameter control, are performed solelythrough a visual input means such as a graphical user interface withtouch control. Preferably, a plurality of interactive screens presentedby the graphical user interface facilitate control of the musicalinstrument system including instrument selection and parameter controland single screen ensemble control as well as the management of musicinformation from the various available sources.

The graphical user interface of the musical instrument system ispreferably controlled through a touch screen system to facilitate rapidand convenient adjustment of system parameters. This arrangementfacilitates understanding by the player and enables "real time"adjustment by professionals, particularly in the midst of a performance.

The graphical user interface can alternatively be controlled andmanipulated by a mouse, joystick or other signal input system. While thepreferred mode of actuation is a touch screen, it is contemplated thatthe graphic controls of the invention may have application inenvironments in which a mouse or other user interface is involved. Thus,terms, such as touch, contact, press, click and manipulate are usedinterchangeably herein to refer to the actuation of the functionrepresented by a graphic image by user action.

As shown in FIG. 7, a control screen 200, which can serve as a controlgraphic, presented by the graphical user interface of the invention caninclude a standard set of "buttons" that are available on every screenthroughout operation of the musical instrument system. These buttons caninclude an access bar 202 and provide a plurality of submenu functions.The standard buttons can also include graphic images for metronomecontrol 204 and help 206. The images presented by the graphical userinterface can be varied as to artistic screen design, colors andarrangement within the scope of the invention. To facilitate anunderstanding of the images presented by the graphical user interfaceand their operation, a set of generic sub-menus for commonly usedfunctions, such as saving and loading will be set forth.

As shown in FIG. 7A, the metronome control icon 204 can activate asubscreen 205 displaying control arrows 207 for controlling the beatsper minute, control arrows 209 for controlling the beats per measure,and control arrows 211 for the relative volume of the metronome.

As shown in FIG. 7, the solo instrument selection screen 200 allowsselection from, for example, one hundred, twenty-eight MIDI instrumentson a single screen by way of an instrument selector area 208. Categoryicons 210 can run across the top of the instrument selector area 208.The selection of a category by contact with one of the category icons210 can cause a display of individual instruments unique to eachcategory on a plurality, such as eight, buttons 212 preferablypositioned under the category icons 210. The individual instrumentbuttons 212 are preferably "radio buttons" in which turning one on turnsanother off, with no more than one button selected at a time. The systemis preferably configured so that the selected instrument sound isimmediately effected upon its selection.

The solo instrument control screen 200 preferably includes a pluralityof effects buttons, for example, for chorus 214, reverb 216 andequalization 218. The buttons 214, 216, 218 can be activated to presentpull-down or pop-up screens to provide alternatives for controlling theeffects. The selected mode of each effect is preferably available in thesound output of the system upon selection.

The solo instrument control screen 200 preferably includes a button 220for activating a demonstration of the sound of the selected instrumentand effects. The demonstration button 220 can activate the system toplay a short example of a song using the currently selected instrument.The system is preferably configured so that pressing any button on thescreen 200 will interrupt or stop the demonstration mode.

The solo instrument control screen 200 preferably includes a button 222for activating a key change, with directional arrows 224 and a numericindication 226 of the number of semitones transposed.

Referring to FIG. 8, along the access bar 202, a second control screendirected to controlling an ensemble of mixed selected instruments isavailable by selecting a button 232 labeled, for example, MIXED. Uponselection, the screen image 234 can present a plurality of boxes 236 orother graphic images to represent musical instrument layers in theensemble. The plurality of layers, for example, six, can each correspondto a selected instrument and effect arrangement. The six possibleinstruments comprising the mix can be indicated by the boxes 236. Themixed instruments control screen preferably presents an access bar 238including options for sound, range, volume, key, pan and drums control.

Under the sound selection mode, the selection of a layer by activatingone of the layer boxes 236 presents an instrument selection screen 240,which is preferably similar to the solo instrument screen 208 (FIG. 7)discussed above. The graphical user interface is preferably arranged sothat the instrument group icon 242 selected within the instrumentselector screen 240 is placed in the layer box 236. The particularinstrument within the instrument category and its associated effects canbe selected as discussed above in reference to FIG. 7.

The user can change an instrument in the mix by touching a layer box236. The instrument selection screen 240 can visually link to that layer(such as Alto Sax) preferably by highlights. The user then uses theinstrument selector 240 in the same manner as with solo instrument butcan preferably also select a NONE button, which simply clears that layerand inserts no instrument (see lower box 236). The instrument selectorscreen 240 remains on the screen until a new layer is selected. When anon-selected layer with an assigned instrument is selected, theinstrument selector 240 will display the instrument group and instrumentcurrently assigned to that layer. The sound ensemble selected can besaved, such as to the hard drive, and a previously stored ensemble canbe retrieved from an information source using the save and load buttons228, 230. Further details are set forth below in reference to FIGS. 26and 27.

Referring to FIG. 9, the mixed instruments access bar 238 preferablyincludes a button 244 to activate a key range selection screen forestablishing the keyboard range for each layer on a single screen. Thebutton 244 can be labeled RANGE. The key range selection screen 246includes an adjustment graphic, such as a keyboard image 248, forselecting the range of keys on the musical keyboard that will produce aninstrument and effect designated for a particular layer 250, as selectedin a prior mixed instrument sound selection screen (FIG. 7). Preferably,the key range selection screen 246 presents a keyboard graphic 248corresponding to the size of the musical keyboard used with the system,for example, an 88-key register as shown. A separate keyboard controlgraphic 248 is provided for each of the layers of the mixed instrumentensemble. The layer box 236 preferably displays the icon of the musicalinstrument group previously selected for the layer 250 and the keyboardselection screen 246 preferably presents the name of the particularinstrument selected from within the musical instrument group adjacentthe associated layer box 236 and keyboard adjustment graphic 248 so thatthe user can quickly identify the sound to be attributed to the selectedkeyboard range.

The system can be configured to activate the keyboard range selection ina variety of ways. Preferably, the keyboard adjustment graphic 248 canbe clicked or touched at the beginning of the desired range and draggedto the end of the desired range. The keyboard graphic 248 preferablyhighlights or provides some other instant visual indication of the rangeselected.

The layer 250 to be designated can be identified to the system bycontacting the layer box 236 or by contacting the corresponding keyboardadjustment graphic 248. The layer 250 selected remains activated foradjustment until the layer box 236 or adjustment graphic 248 for anotherlayer is contacted. The system is preferably configured so that alllayers are unmuted and the first layer 252 is set to the full range ofthe musical keyboard and is highlighted for keyboard range adjustment.

The mixed instrument keyboard selection screen 246 can also provide acontrol button 254 labeled for example SET VIA KEYBOARD for activatingkeyboard range selection through the musical keyboard itself (not shown)The particular musical instrument layer is selected by contacting thelayer box and the keyboard selection is entered by touching the controlbutton 254. The control button 254 preferably highlights, signalling theuser to strike two keys on the musical keyboard to set the upper andlower limits of the desired range. The control button 254 lowlights,indicating the deactivation of the keyboard selection mode, and thekeyboard adjustment graphic for the selected layer indicates the keyrange. The set via keyboard function is also preferably deactivated bycontacting any other control button or image on the screen 246.

The keyboard selection screen 246 preferably provides a mute controlicon 256 for each layer. The icon 256 can be contacted to mute andrestore the sound of the associated layer. Each mute control icon 256preferably visually displays the sound status; the mute control icon 256displays, for example, that layer 258 for harp has been muted, while theremaining mute control icons indicate that their respective layers areconfigured to produce sound. The mute control icons 256 are preferablyconfigured so that any of them can be contacted without changing to thelayer presently selected.

When the adjustment graphic 248 is touched, it activates and highlightsthat layer, for example, layer 250. That layer 250 remains active andhighlighted until another layer graphic is touched. The mute buttons 256are an exception in that touching them does not activate the associatedlayer.

The sound ensemble selected can be saved, such as to the hard drive(FIG. 2), and a previously stored ensemble can be retrieved from aninformation source using the save and load buttons 228, 230 (see FIGS.26 and 27).

Referring to FIG. 10, the mixed instruments access bar 238 preferablyincludes a button 258 to activate a volume adjustment screen or volumeadjustment control graphic 260 for single screen adjustment of all layervolumes. The button 258 can be labeled VOLUME. The volume adjustmentscreen 260 includes an adjustment graphic, such as a volume slider 262,for adjusting the volume level for each musical instrument layerselected in a prior mixed instrument sound selection screen (FIG. 7).Preferably, the volume slider 262 presents a movable marker 264 thatappears at a touched location and preferably displays a level number.The volume level and the corresponding position of the marker 264 canalso be controlled by contacting and holding the arrow icons 266 at theends of the volume slider 262. The volume slider 262 can also present acentral marker 268 that can be contacted to reset the volume to adefault level and position the marker 264 to a centered position.

Each layer box 236 preferably displays the icon of the musicalinstrument group previously selected for the layer and the screen 260preferably presents the name of the particular instrument selected fromwithin the musical instrument group adjacent the associated layer box236 and volume slider 262 so that the user can quickly identify thesound being adjusted for volume.

A separate volume slider 262 is provided for each of the musicalinstrument layers of the mixed instrument ensemble. The layer to bedesignated can be identified to the system by contacting the layer box236 or by contacting the corresponding volume slider 262. The layerselected remains activated for adjustment until the layer box 236 oradjustment graphic 262 for another layer is contacted.

To adjust all levels, a user can contact an ADJUST ALL button 270. Allinstrument layers highlight, then the user may slide any one of the sixmarkers 264, any of the up/down arrows 266, or any one of the 6 resetmarkers 268, to simultaneously adjust all layers to the same volumelevel. The ADJUST ALL button 270 preferably remains in effect andhighlighted until pressed again. The volume control screen 260preferably provides a mute control icon 256 for each layer that can becontacted to mute and restore the sound of the associated layer asdiscussed above (FIG. 8). The mute setting selected in one subscreen fora layer remains in that state for other subscreens.

The volume settings selected can be saved, such as to the hard drive 64(FIG. 2), and a previously stored ensemble can be retrieved from aninformation source using the save and load buttons 228, 230.

Referring to FIG. 11, the mixed instruments access bar 238 preferablyincludes a button 272 to activate a key transposition screen 274 toadjust the relative position of all layers on a single screen. Thebutton 272 can be labeled KEY SHIFT. The key transposition screen 274enables the user to adjust the key of each musical instrument layer. Thekey transposition screen 274 includes an adjustment graphic, such as akey slider 276, for transposing the key of the corresponding instrumentlayer 278. The key marker 280 can be contacted and moved and preferablydisplays a plus or minus number representing the number of semitones oftransposition for each musical instrument layer selected in a priormixed instrument sound selection screen 234 (FIG. 8). The transpositionand the corresponding position of the marker 280 can also be controlledby contacting and holding the arrow icons 282 at the ends of the keytransposition slider 276. The key transposition slider 276 can alsopresent a central indicator 284 that can be contacted to reset the keyto a default value and position the marker 280 to a centered position.

The layer box 236 preferably displays the icon of the musical instrumentgroup previously selected for the layer 278 and the key transpositionscreen 274 preferably presents the name of the particular instrumentselected from within the musical instrument group adjacent theassociated layer box 236 and key transposition slider 276 so that theuser can quickly identify the instrument sound being transposed.

A separate key transposition slider 276 is provided for each of themusical instrument layers of the mixed instrument ensemble. The layer278 to be designated can be identified to the system by contacting thelayer box 236 or by contacting the corresponding volume slider 276. Thelayer 278 selected remains activated for adjustment until the layer boxor adjustment graphic for another layer is contacted.

To adjust all levels, the user can click on a button 285 labeled, forexample ADJUST ALL, all instruments highlight, then the user may slideany one of the markers 280, any of the 12 up/down arrows 282, or any oneof the 6 reset markers 284 to simultaneously adjust all layers to thesame key transposition. The ADJUST ALL button 285 remains in effect andhighlighted until pressed again.

The key transposition screen preferably provides a mute control icon 256for each layer that can be contacted to mute and restore the instrumentsound of the associated layer as discussed above (see FIG. 9).

The key adjustment selected can be saved, such as to the hard drive 64(FIG. 2), and a previously stored ensemble can be retrieved from aninformation source using the save and load buttons 228, 230.

Referring to FIG. 12, the mixed instrument access bar 238 preferablyincludes a button 286, labeled, for example, PAN, for presenting a panadjustment screen 288 for controlling the balance of instrument soundfor each instrument layer between left and right loudspeakers of thesystem (not shown). The pan adjustment screen 288 can provide controlgraphics similar to the keyboard range adjustment screen (FIG. 9), thevolume adjustment screen (FIG. 10) and the key transposition screen(FIG. 11), including a plurality of instrument group layer boxes 236,preferably bearing instrument group icons, corresponding individualinstrument labels and adjustment graphics, such as a pan slider 290. Thepan slider 290 can include a moveable marker 292, adjustment arrow icons294 and a reset marker 296 that operate as discussed above with respectto the volume adjustment screen 260 (FIG. 10). The pan control screencan further include mute control icons 256 for muting and restoringindividual instrument sounds and a button for simultaneously activatingall layers for adjustment.

The pan adjustment screen facilitates rapid adjustment of instrumentgroup panning by presenting all the instrument groups and their pancontrols on a single contact by first contacting an ADJUST ALL button298.

The pan adjustment selected can be saved, such as to the hard drive 64(FIG. 2), and a previously stored ensemble can be retrieved from aninformation source using the save and load buttons 228, 230.

Referring to FIG. 13, the mixed instruments access bar 238 preferablyfurther provides a button 300, marked DRUMS for example, for presentinga drum sound selector screen 302. The drum selector screen 302 canpresent drum a selection area 304 similar to the multiple musicalinstrument selector screen discussed above in reference to FIG. 8. Thedrum selector screen 302 preferably includes a plurality of drum groupboxes 306 for displaying drum group icons. When a drum group isselected, a subscreen 308 containing numerous drum voices within thedrum group is preferably displayed. The drum voice is selected bycontacting the desired drum voice button 309.

The allocation of the selected drum voice to a particular key of themusical keyboard can be accomplished in a number of ways. The drumselector screen 302 preferably provides a keyboard graphic 301displaying the keys of the musical keyboard 10 (FIG. 1) of the system.

An "I" shaped key indicator 303 can be provided to allocate a drum voiceto a particular key on the musical keyboard 10 (FIG. 1). The upperportion of the key indicator 303 can operate as a button to set thepresently selected drum voice to the marked key on the keyboard graphic301. The position of the key indicator 303 can be moved by contactingand dragging the key indicator at its base.

The drum selection screen 302 is also preferably interfaced with themusical keyboard 10 (FIG. 1) so that the drum voice can be set to aparticular key by striking the desired key after the drum voice has beenidentified on the drum selector screen 302.

Once a key has been assigned a drum voice, the keyboard graphic 302preferably displays an assigned key highlight 305 or other visualindication.

The drum selector screen 302 can also provide a volume control 310 foradjusting the level of the drum sounds and a demonstration button 312for playing a sample of the selected drum voice. All allocated drumvoices can be cleared by a CLEAR button 307. The drum voice can beassigned to keys established by the general MIDI standard by pressingGMSET button 313.

The drum voice arrangement selected can be saved, such as to the harddrive 64 (FIG. 2), and a previously stored ensemble can be retrievedfrom an information source using the save and load buttons 228, 230.

Referring to FIG. 14, a STYLES button 314 presents a styles selectionscreen 316 for selecting and loading a style routine from a sourceselected from one of the information sources indicated by the sourceselection graphic 318. The styles selection screen 316 preferablyincludes graphic buttons to stop 320, play 322, and start synchronizedplay 324 of the style rhythm upon depression of a first musical keyboardkey (not shown).

To load a style, the user can select a style 326 from the selectedsource. To listen to that style 326, the user can contact the playbutton 322.

The style selection screen 316 can further include transposition 328 andvolume 330 sliders. Also, trigger buttons to invoke INTRO 332, FILL 334and END VARIATIONS 336 in the style rhythm can be provided.

The source selection graphic 318 preferably includes buttons forselecting the source of style files. These sources can include file insystem memory 338, CD-ROM 340 or floppy disk 342 and can be expanded toinclude other sources.

As can be appreciated from the previous description of control screens,the graphical user interface of the invention is designed to provideconsolidated control of the sounds produced through the musicalkeyboard-activated sound generator and provides a unified control foraccessing and utilizing music related digital information from a varietyof sources. Thus, the access bar 202 for the system preferably includesbuttons for further categories, such as player, recording, settings,storage and applications for managing musical information from thevarious information sources provided by the system (See FIG. 2).

Referring to FIG. 15, the system access bar 202 further includes abutton 344, marked for example PLAYER, for accessing a screen or controlgraphic 346 for selecting and playing digital information from a varietyof sources. The player screen 346 allows the user to control play ofstandard MIDI files from the hard drive, CD drive or floppy disk drive;CD audio tracks; recordings made on the piano and the like.

The source is determined by selectors in the source graphic 348. ThePIANO selection 350 can be used to play music information from the harddrive 64 and preferably defaults to a MIDI songs directory, but canaccess other directories. The source graphic 348 can also presentoptions for compact disc 352 and floppy disk 354. The screen 346provides a control bar 355 with operation buttons including stop 356,play/pause 358, continuous single play toggle 360, skip back to start ofsong 362, skip forward to start of next song 364. The operation buttonscan further include a track slider 366 which can be manipulated bymoving the marker 368 or the direction arrow icons 370. Rewind and fastforward can be accomplished through manipulating the slider 368 reverseand forward.

A file/song can be selected by contact with a labeled button 372 withina directory frame 374, which preferably highlights the track and loadsit for playback. If there are more songs than slots in the directoryframe 374, scroller bars 376 preferably appear to permit scrollingthrough the list. The directory frame 374 also includes a directorytitle box 378 with a pop-down function to list other directoriesoptions.

The player screen 346 can also permit transfer to a detail screen 380.The detail screen 380 can present the individual tracks 382 within aMIDI song and the instrument voices occupying those tracks. The title ofthe song is preferably shown in the box above the tracks 382. Each track382 preferably provides mute control icons 384 for selectively mutingindividual track instrument sounds.

The player screen 346 also preferably provides a key change slidercontrol 386 for transposing the entire file. The tempo of the song maybe change through the functions available under the universal metronomecontrol screen as discussed above in reference to FIG. 7A. If the systemprogram detects karaoke lyrics within a selected MIDI file, a LYRICS tab388 can be added to the player screen 346.

Referring to FIG. 16, a selection of the LYRICS tab 388 presents alyrics screen 390 displaying lyrics 392 preferably in large type, andreadable from a distance. The song title currently playing is preferablydisplayed. The lyrics screen 390 preferably continues to display thecontrol bar 355 and presents the key change control slider 386. Thisfeature can be used to provide words for use during performance andenables mid-performance key changes by the user.

Referring to FIG. 17, the access bar 202 of the system furtherpreferably includes an activation button 394 for accessing a recordscreen 398 and can be labeled, for example RECORD. The sequencerprovided by the record screen 398 is preferably easy to use, while stillgiving control over individual tracks. It is possible to record anyinstrument voice (mix or single) into a sequence.

A time frame 400 shows the current position in the piece. The user canplace a current position marker 404 in a time bar 406 by clicking anddragging the marker 404 to the desired location. Additionally, arrowbuttons 408 on either side of the time bar 406 can move the currentposition marker 404 by, for example, a 100th of a beat. The buttons on acontrol bar 410 include a stop 412, play/pause 414, start of song 416,next song 418, rewind 420, and fast forward 422. Additionally, there aretwo toggle buttons: a record toggle button 424 and a synchro-startbutton 426.

In operation, pressing play/pause 414 when the sequence is stoppedcauses the sequence to begin playing/recording (depending on the stateof the record toggle button 424) at the current position 400 and thefollowing buttons become disabled: start of song 416, rewind 420, andfast forward 422. Pressing play/pause 414 when the sequence is playing,pauses the sequence. Pressing stop 412 stops the sequence, restores thecurrent position marker 404 to its original position before play wasstarted and all currently disabled buttons are enabled. Pressing rewind420/fast forward 422 moves the position marker 404 backward/forward at arelatively high speed until the beginning/end of the song is reached, orthe button is released. Pressing the record button 424 will toggle theplay button 414 function to either play or record over the currentlyselected track. Pressing the synchro-start button 426 will togglesynchro-start to either activated or not. If synchro-start 426 isactivated, pressing any key or pedal is equivalent to pressing theplay/pause button; the note played is audible and will be recorded ifthe record button 424 is on.

There can be a plurality, such as four, single instrument tracks 428.When a single instrument track 428 is marked for recording, the currentsingle instrument sound selected on the single instrument selectionscreen 200 (FIG. 7) is heard and is recorded onto the track. Each track428 preferably has the following attributes and controls (visual orderis not required by this lists order): track number, track name, volume,set-to-current.

The track is simply numbered 1-4. When the user presses on, for example,track 430, that track is marked for recording. Recording can only happenon one track, so any other track marked for recording is cleared. Thereis preferably always at least one track marked for recording.

The track name area 432 shows the current track name, which can bechanged by pressing on the name area 432. This preferably brings up anon-screen alpha-numeric keyboard (not shown) for entering the name.

A relative volume toggle 434 applies an overall volume adjustment forthe track 428. A mute button 436 is a toggle that either mutes or soundsthe track for playback or record. A muted track preferably cannot berecorded upon. A clear track button 438 clears the associated track.

A SET TO CURRENT button 440 changes all instruments on the track to thecurrent single instrument. When recording, the user hears all tracksunless they have been muted.

The screen 398 preferably provides a mixed instrument track 442. Thecontrols for the mix instrument track 442 are preferably identical tothe single instrument track 428 in function, with the exception that theassociated SET TO CURRENT instrument button 440 will change allinstruments on the track to the current mixed instrument ensembleestablished in the previously discussed mixed instrument screen 234(FIG. 8).

The screen 398 also provides a styles track 444. The controls for thestyles track 444 are preferably the same as the single and mixed tracks428, 442, except that the associated SET TO CURRENT instrument button440 will change all styles on the track to the current style asestablished and discussed above with reference to FIG. 14. Activation ofthe styles track 444, preferably displays a style control graphic 446.The styles control graphic 446 includes an INTRO button 448. When thisbutton is pressed, and the style is not currently playing, the intro forthe current style will play starting at the next beat followed by thenormal play for the style. An END button 450 is also provided. When thestyle is playing, the end for the current style will play. When a FILLbutton 452 is pressed, the fill for the current style will play startingat the next beat. The control graphic can also provide mute controls 453for selectively muting the voices in the styles track 444.

Three other general controls are preferably available on the recordscreen 398. A CLEAR ALL button 454 clears all tracks in the sequence.The recorded piece selected can be saved, and a previously storedrecording can be retrieved from an information source using the save andload buttons 228, 230.

Referring to FIG. 18, the main access bar 202 for the system can includea SETTINGS button 456 for activating a settings screen 458 having asubmenu bar 460. The settings screen 458 can include a frame 462accessed through a GENERAL button 464 for adjusting date and timeinformation in the system. To change, user touches either window fortime 466 or for date 468, and touches arrows up/down keys 470 to movethe selected number up or down.

The settings screen 458 can also present a key touch adjustment frame472. A user may touch and slide indicator 474 and/or use HARDER orSOFTER buttons 476 to move indicator 474.

Referring to FIG. 19, the submenu bar 460 can have PEDALS button 478 foraccessing a pedals control screen 480 to assign to each pedals afunction of, for example, soft, sostenuto or sustain from a choice offunctions on pop-up screens (not shown) for each control area 481. ARESET button 482 can be provided to restore the pedals to factorydefault settings.

Referring to FIG. 20, the submenu bar 460 can have an INPUT button 484for presenting an input settings screen 486 to identify MIDI inputdevices or accessories attached to the system, such as a volume pedal(not shown). A pop-up list of input devices can be provided by a controlarea 487 for each input port. A reset button 488 will restore the inputsto default settings.

Referring to FIG. 21, the submenu bar 460 can include a printer settingsactivation button 490 for presenting a printer settings screen 492.Available printers are preferably displayed in a selection list 494.Scroll bars can also be provided. A print button 496 can produce aprinted test sheet. An ADD button 498 can bring up a further selectioninterface with Add, Done, and Cancel buttons (not shown).

Referring to FIG. 22, the submenu bar 460 can have a screen saversettings activation button 500. The associated control screen 502 allowsthe user to control screen savers. The START AFTER button 504 definesthe period of inactivity before the screen saver is activated. STOPAFTER button 506 controls the method by which the interface is restoredonce the screen saver is activated. The ANY ACTION setting of button 506will interrupt the screen saver when any input is sensed. ADD button 508functions as the add function in the printer selection screen 492 asdiscussed above with reference to FIG. 21. A START button 510 can begina demonstration of the screen saver selected.

Referring to FIG. 23, the access bar 202 preferably includes a button512 such as STORAGE for accessing a storage control screen 514. Ihlescreen 514 can present a directory frame 516 that includes a pluralityof source selection buttons for accessing the hard drive 518, compactdisc 520 and floppy disks 522. The directory frame 516 preferablyincludes a title block 524 and a directory 526 of file titles with ascroller 528 for moving through the list.

The control screen 514 preferably has a free space indicator 530 thatdisplays the free space on either the hard drive or floppy drivedepending upon the source selected.

To rename a file or directory, the user can select the source 518, 520or 522 and select the file/directory 524 or 526 in which thefile/directory highlights. The user then hits the RENAME button 532. Thescreen preferably includes an alphanumeric keyboard graphic 534 forallowing user input of alphanumeric information in connection withrenaming function. To delete a file or directory, the user can selectthe source 518, 520 or 522, and select the file/directory 524 or 526 inwhich the file directory highlights. The DELETE button 536 is thenselected. Selection of the FORMAT button 535 executes a format programon an inserted floppy disk.

To copy a file or directory to another destination, the user selects thesource 518, 520 or 522 directory, and selects the file/directory 524 or526. The user then hits the COPY button 538. Referring to FIG. 24, asecond selection-type interface 540 preferably pops up to the right ofthe first frame 516. The user can then select the location for thefile/directory 544 or 546 to be copied to and hit the COPY button 548 orcancels the copy by touching the CANCEL button 550. A similar screen canbe provided for move function activated by the MOVE button 552 (FIG.23).

Referring to FIG. 25, the system access bar 202 can provide anAPPLICATIONS button 554 to present a control screen 555 for startingother applications 556 that may be used in the musical instrument systemenvironment. The source of applications can be selected with a harddrive selection button 558, CD selection button 560 or a floppy diskselection button 562.

To begin an application, the user can select one of the applicationicons 556, which preferably highlights, and click the START icon 564.The player shell application 189 (FIG. 6) is closed, and the selectedapplication runs. Through this feature, the musical instrument systemprovides a music information environment in which newly developedapplications can be readily loaded and can utilize an integrated musicalkeyboard and various music information sources through a readilyaccessible, consolidated graphical user interface.

Referring to FIG. 26, the SAVE button 228 presented in the variouscontrol screens (see FIGS. 7-24) can present a further control screen590 providing a source selection graphic 592 including buttons for harddrive 594, compact disc 596 and floppy 598, as well as a directory orfolder frame 600 listing the current folder and a pull down control foradditional directories available as storing locations. New directoriescan be added by touching an activation button 602 labeled, for example,NEW FOLDER. A list of files 601 in the current folder 600 can bedisplayed, and the current file can be highlighted. The current file canbe a file previously loaded, changed and now presented for re-saving. Inthis circumstance, the system preferably defaults the current file namein the identification area 603 for saving. The identification area 603can provide a RENAME control, which can activate a further control areahaving an alpha-numeric keyboard graphic 604 for entering a new name.The name of the file is preferably displayed in a frame 606 above thealpha-numeric keyboard graphic 604. The new name in frame 606 canapproved upon pressing the OK button 608 or can be canceled through aCANCEL button 610. Errors in the new name can also be corrected by aCLEAR button 607.

Upon entry of a new name, the name is changed (not shown) in theidentification area 603. The file can then be saved by actuation of aSAVE button 609 or the process can be terminated with a CANCEL button611.

For newly created recordings or ensemble settings or other informationto be recorded for the first time, rather than modification of aretrieved file, the alphanumeric screen 604 preferably appears first forentry of the new file name 606. The save graphic 590 and thealphanumeric area 604 can appear simultaneously or separately on thedisplay.

Referring to FIG. 27, previously stored settings or files can beretrieved through actuation of the LOAD button 230 present on thevarious control screens (see FIGS. 7-24). The LOAD button can activate asubscreen 612 displaying a source selection graphic 614 including harddrive 616, compact disc 618 and floppy disk drive 620 as well as adirectory frame 622 listing the directory and a scrollable list offiles. Once the desired file has been selected through contact andpreferable highlight, the file can be loaded by touching the LOAD button624 or the operation can be canceled through the CANCEL button 626.

The foregoing description is directed to various embodiments andpreferences for using the features of the invention. Variousalternatives not specifically discussed but within the scope of theinvention may now be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art.Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited by theabove discussion, but rather should be determined by a reasonableconstruction of the following claims.

We claim:
 1. An electronic music instrument system, comprising:anelectronic music instrument having a musical keyboard for playingselectable groups of reproducible sounds and individually selectablereproducible sounds within said groups of sounds; an audio signalgenerator for energizing an audio amplifier responsive to different onesof a plurality of digital audio sources, including said groups of soundsand said individual sounds of said electronic music instrument; agraphical user interface for displaying at least one control graphicrepresenting controllable parameters of said audio signals generated bysaid generator, one of said controllable parameters including real timeallocation of keys on said keyboard to different sounds; and, controlmeans responsive to operation of said control graphic for adjusting saidcontrollable parameters of said generator and for selectively couplingdifferent ones of said sources to said generator.
 2. The system of claim1, wherein said graphical user interface comprises:a video display; and,a touch-responsive overlay.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein differentsounds include voices.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein said differentsounds include single instrument sounds.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein said different sounds include sound effects.
 6. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said different sounds include multiple instrumentsounds and sound layers.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein saiddifferent sounds include sound layers.
 8. The system of claim 1, whereinsaid musical keyboard plays only preprogrammed musical notes.
 9. Thesystem of claim 6, wherein:said graphical user interface displays afurther control graphic; and, other ones of said controllable parametersinclude recording multiple channel and allocation of different soundlayers to different ones of said multiple channels responsive tooperation of said further control graphic.
 10. The system of claim 9,wherein still other ones of said controllable parameters includeallocation of drum syncopation to different ones of said multiplechannels.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein yet other ones of saidcontrollable parameters include same-channel recording anddifferent-channel recording of said sound layers and said drumsyncopation responsive of operation of said further control graphic. 12.The system of claim 1, wherein said controlled different sounds includedrum voice selection.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein said pluralityof sources further comprises a modem for communicating with an on-linesource of digital information.
 14. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising a piano housing, said system being mounted within said pianohousing.
 15. The system of claim 2, further comprising a piano housing,said video display being mounted in said piano housing.
 16. The systemof claim 2, further comprising a piano housing having a music standformed integrally therewith, said video display being mounted in saidmusic stand.
 17. The system of claim 2, further comprising a pianohousing having a music stand formed integrally therewith, said videodisplay forming an integral part of said music stand.
 18. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said control means is exclusively responsive to saidgraphical user interface and to said musical keyboard.
 19. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said sources include at least one prerecorded source.20. An electronic music instrument system, comprising:an electronicmusic instrument having a musical keyboard for playing preprogrammedmusical notes from selectable groups of reproducible sounds andindividually selectable reproducible sounds within said groups ofsounds; an audio signal generator for energizing an audio amplifierresponsive to different ones of a plurality of digital audio sources,including said groups of sounds and said individual sounds of saidelectronic music instrument; a graphical user interface for dislaying atleast one control graphic representing controllable parameters of saidaudio signals generated by said generator, one of said controllableparameters including key allocation responsive to said musical keyboard;and, control means responsive to operation of said control graphic foradjusting said controllable parameters of said generator and forselectively coupling different ones of said sources to said generator.21. The system of claim 20, wherein:said graphical user interfacegenerates a further control graphic; and, a further one of saidcontrollable parameters is a volume control for each sound layerresponsive to operation of said further control graphic.
 22. The systemof claim 20, wherein:said graphical user interface generates a furthercontrol graphic; and, a further one of said controllable parameters iskey transposition adjustment for each sound layer responsive tooperation of said further control graphic.
 23. The system of claim 20,wherein:said graphical user interface generates a further controlgraphic; and, a further one of said controllable parameters is panadjustment for each sound layer responsive to operation of said furthercontrol graphic.
 24. The system of claim 20, wherein another one of saidcontrollable parameters is assignment of sound layers to ranges of saidkeys.
 25. The system of claim 20, wherein other ones of saidcontrollable parameters include drum syncopation, triggers, key changeand volume.
 26. The system of claim 20, wherein other ones of saidcontrollable parameters include drum syncopation, triggers, key changeand volume.
 27. An electronic music instrument system, comprising:anelectronic music instrument having a musical keyboard for plainpreprogrammed musical notes from selectable groups of reproduciblesounds and individually selectable reproducible sounds within saidgroups of sounds; an audio signal generator for energizing an audioamplifier responsive to different ones of a plurality of digital audiosources, including said groups of sound and said individual sounds ofsaid electronic music instrument; a graphical user interface fordisplaying at least one control graphic representing controllableparameters including audio characteristics of further sources other thansaid source energized by said audio signal generator responsive tooperation of said musical keyboard; and, control means responsive tooperation of said control graphic for adjusting said controllableparameters of said generator and for selectively coupling different onesof said sources and further sources to said generator.
 28. The system ofclaim 27, wherein said further sources comprise:a hard disk drive; afloppy disk drive; and, a compact disc drive.
 29. The system of claim27, wherein said further sources include at least one prerecordedsource.
 30. The system of claim 27, wherein said control means isexclusively responsive to said graphical user interface and to saidmusical keyboard.